Blog

How to protect your warehouse

You go to great lengths to protect your employees and your products. Your facility has well secured, durable storage that reduces the chances for shelving tipping over or falling. The materials are well stored, convenient to access and will not fall. However, you still may not have all the protection that you really require.

Safety Net

The safety nets can be installed horizontally or vertically. The main purpose is to prevent packages from falling off and to protect employees from injuries and packages from damaging.
The safety nets are a non-rigid protection that safeguards areas of heavy pedestrian traffic or work stations from falling inventory.

Wire Mesh Rack Guard

A sturdy wall of protection bolt directly to pallet rack uprights. This mesh places a barrier between stored inventory and the pedestrian aisles below. Employees remain safe from falling packages should a forklift bump the side of the racking.
The mesh rack guard allows easy viewing of inventory and are usually ordered in custom sizes.

Shelf Guarding and Protection

Forklift operators should be well-trained and certified. Unfortunately, even the best operators make mistakes. Accidents can happen no matter how careful your employees are. Rack protection systems are designed to prevent damage to shelving, and the potential for injuries, by stopping accidental impact. There are several choices in these guarding systems available. Take a look at the protection and benefits each choice offers to see how your warehouse safety can improve.

Guard Rail Systems

Heavy-duty rails are designed to handle an impact of 10,000 pounds from a vehicle traveling at around 4 mph. These type of rails are found from quickly-assembled to extreme heavy-duty all-welded protective system. Most common guard rails are powder-coated yellow for more visibility and overall length varies from 2’ to 10’. The rails often include a thick baseplate (10’ x 10’) with mounting holes.
Guard rails are also beneficial for high traffic warehouses as an improvement over painted lines for pedestrians and powered vehicles. Both forklift operators and employees will often cross into sections where safety is jeopardized. With a heavy-duty rail system, you can keep a safe division between vehicles and workers.

Rack Protectors

Floor guards offer protection for shelving row ends and can also be installed along the front of racking systems. The heavy-duty protection is made of steel uprights welded to base plates. For an easy and quick snap-on installation, the plastic rack floor guards are idea.
This type of protectors safeguards the upright frames from forklift damage, meaning your people, inventory and rack is safer.

Post Protectors

Single posts can be protected with post guards. These guards are manufactured with the same durable high-strength steel material and usually come with black plastic top caps. Post protectors are an excellent addition for any posts that rise up in your warehouse, especially column posts that are set in the middle of open areas. The added visibility will reduce the risks of forklifts or pedestrians colliding into columns.

Advantages of utilizing protectors

In addition to reducing the risk of knocking into shelving, which can create dents and reduce stability, guard systems improve the safety for your workers. Even light contact from a forklift can dislodge stored materials. Items may not fall immediately, but become unstable and fall when an employee goes to remove the items from the shelving.
The brightly colored guards also raise the visibility of racking and posts. Workers walking through racks are less likely to bump into the edges or ends of shelving. While not a significant source for injuries, the nuisance can be avoided. Railings can be placed in front of many styles of shelving or racking systems, including mobile racks. Rails can be set at the distance you require for manual or vehicular access.

Guarding systems are available to protect workstations along forklift paths as well. These pieces bolt to the floor and prevent impact to desks or tables located near traffic areas. A workstation guard adds safety for workers and any work being performed in the area. If you have inspection or shipping tables set up in your warehouse, workstation guards will greatly increase the safety of the area.